Postpartum belly wraps, postpartum girdles, belly binding and belly bands are becoming more and more popular among new moms. Do postpartum belly wraps work? Well, I want to share with you my experiences with postpartum belly wraps during 4 pregnancies, whether or not they work, and my recommendations for postpartum support.
Do postpartum belly wraps work or is it all a hoax? Well, I’m here to tell you they work and they work wonders.
I’m Dr. Jena Bradley, a physical therapist and a mom of 4. Let me tell you all about my postpartum belly wrap story and why I recommend them to all new moms.
I have had many different experiences with several products over the course of 4 pregnancies. Some products worked exceptionally well while others have no effect at all when it came shrinking my postpartum belly. Be sure not to purchase or invest the time in a postpartum belly wrap product that does absolutely nothing for your recovery.
Ultimately, I want to share with you what I recommend as you navigate your postpartum journey.
Do Postpartum Belly Wraps Work?
I have tried a variety of products over the years. With my first pregnancy in 2012, I was able to borrow a Belly Bandit from my sister-in-law.
Actually, I didn’t even know much about the products that were out there, and she happened to have a Belly Bandit that she let me borrow since I was scrambling at the last minute to have one since I had already given birth. I wanted my belly to look flatter for the newborn pictures that I had scheduled 10 days postpartum.
After wearing it, I was amazed that the wrap actually worked.
Within a few weeks of wearing the Belly Bandit, my stomach was flat without doing any exercises. My stomach was shrinking, and my uterus was contracting faster than normal because of the Belly Bandit.
I had absolutely great results. It was comfortable, seamless and was really easy to wear. You can read more about my Belly Bandit review here.
Postpartum belly wraps act as an assistant to the natural contractions that take place in your uterus. The wrap speeds up the healing process.
Is It Too Late To Wear A Postpartum Belly Wrap?
When I got pregnant with my second baby, my sister-in-law needed her Belly Bandit back because she also just had a baby.
When it came time to the end of my second pregnancy, I completely forgot about buying one for myself. So I didn’t have one in the early weeks of postpartum recovery for baby #2.
I was somewhat frantically scrambling to find something to help my stomach look flat for the 10 day postpartum newborn pictures with the baby photographer. So I sent my husband out to look for some sort of postpartum belly wrap from Target and Dicks Sporting Goods.
I thought surely a back brace would work just fine. There was nothing.
He found a generic back brace, and it was practically useless.
There was so much elastic give and stretchiness to it, no support and really uncomfortable. It was lined with a sticky material that made me sweat a lot. I don’t recommend it to anyone.
Overall, don’t buy any over-the-counter back brace for postpartum belly support. It won’t work.
So in the end, I didn’t do anything for my postpartum belly support after I had my second baby, and I had much slower progress when it came to getting my stomach to look flat again. I had to work much harder at exercises which took longer overall.
Related: Postpartum Exercise: When To Start And How To Get A Flat Tummy
Do Postpartum Belly Bands Work?
Another option people think works but actually doesn’t work are belly bands. Definitely take a moment to read this article about what belly bands actually are and what they are used for.
To explain it briefly, a belly band is a piece of elastic fabric that covers up your lower belly and is used as an undergarment in some way. It helps to extend the life of your tops and blouses as your stomach continues to grow during pregnancy.
It can also be used postpartum for when your postpartum belly continues to be on the bigger side and you want your clothes to still fit.
The belly band helps cover your belly and lies right above your pants, making the appearance of an under shirt. Belly bands in this case have no compression or support. These are not used to help decrease the size of your uterus via compression. Belly bands are strictly for a piece of attire.
3-in-1 Postpartum Belt
With my 3rd pregnancy, I remembered to buy something in advance. I didn’t want to go through what I went through with my second baby.
So I went on Amazon and looked up something that was not too expensive, had good compression and had good reviews. So I purchased the 3-in-1 postpartum belly wrap.
I ended up wearing it for my 3rd and 4th postpartum recoveries. It worked really well.
The 3-in-1 Postpartum Belly Support Recovery Wrap from Amazon
The 3-in-1 Postpartum Belly Wrap has 3 parts. You wear the first part low, down around your hips and lower belly region. Wear the first wrap for the beginning stages of postpartum recovery. You can wear it as early as 2 days after having a baby.
As you progress and start tolerating the first wrap, you can add the second wrap. The second wrap layers on top of the first wrap. The second wrap has wings that assist with more compression.
It also comes with a pelvis band. It goes lower around your pelvis. You can even pull it down low after you are wearing it.
The 3-in-1 postpartum belly wrap worked really well and helped to compress my stomach, but there was one major drawback. It was bulky; therefore, I did not wear it out in public. It’s hard to move in.
But I did like to wear it at home since it does a great job of compression, but ultimately, I recommend the Belly Bandit since it does everything.
Postpartum Belly Wrap Recommendations From A Physical Therapist
The Belly Bandit helps with the compression, is comfortable, seamless and you can wear it out in public under your clothes and you can’t tell you are wearing it at all.
These are the two I recommend: The Belly Bandit and the 3-in-1 Postpartum Belly Wrap Support on Amazon. Different prices, different comfort but both work very well.
The postpartum belly wrap is a great thing in conjunction with postpartum abdominal exercises. The two together are a perfect match. I call them The Dream Team.
If you are looking for the most effective postpartum ab routine to help get your stomach even flatter, then check out this postpartum core workout.
This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.
*It is important to always consult your doctor before beginning any exercise program and get medical clearance. Always warm up thoroughly and stretch after all workouts. LiveCoreStrong.com and Jena Bradley will be not be responsible or liable for any injury sustained while exercising at home, gym or elsewhere. Perform exercises at your own risk.
Which belly bandit did you use?
Ali, I used the original Belly Bandit.